Rescuers take to the skies

Ray Gora / Lincoln Times-NewsA mock victim is hoisted to the cabin of a Blackhawk helicopter on Tuesday during training exercises conducted by NCHART on Lake Norman near Denver.

More than 16 agencies from Lincoln and surrounding counties joined the North Carolina Helicopter and Aquatic Rescue Team on Tuesday for the first of three days of specialized water rescue exercises on Lake Norman in Denver.
The team, comprised of highly trained and rigorously tested technicians from military, state and local agencies, is capable of performing helicopter based rescue missions such as swiftwater/floodwater, urban or wilderness high angle and rescues of injured persons from remote mountain areas.
NCHART is back in Lincoln County for the second time after first conducting exercises here in 2012.